ERIC Number: ED473694
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2002-Dec
Pages: 92
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
At the Starting Line: Early Childhood Education Programs in the 50 States.
Griffin, Darion; Lundy-Ponce, Giselle
Advocating an early childhood education structure that is state-supported, accountable for high standards, sufficiently funded to include all children who need it and whose parents want it, and comparable to the systems of other high-achieving industrialized nations, this report provides baseline information about U.S. states' provision of early childhood education, including policies of preschool programs for 3- and 4-year-olds and kindergarten for 5-year-olds. Findings include the following: (1) 28 states provide preschool programs to 3- and 4-year-olds, without restricted access for 3-year-olds; (2) 21 states give enrollment priority to low-income children and children with other risk factors; (3) 8 states and the District of Columbia require all early childhood teachers to have a bachelor's degree and all early childhood workers to have at least a child development association (CDA) credential; (5) 8 states pay lead early childhood teachers a salary comparable to the state's K-12 teachers; (6) 14 states have school readiness standards and require programs to use them; and (7) 7 states fund full- and half-day kindergarten and require kindergarten enrollment. In light of these findings, the report includes a set of recommendations to states for taking next steps to promote highquality, universal early childhood education, including: (1) making preschool available to all 3- and 4-year-olds, beginning with disadvantaged children; (2) guarantee full-day kindergarten for all children whose families want them to participate; (3) require higher levels of formal education and training, and develop sources to increase compensation of all teachers and staff; and (4) require and enforce standards for all programs. (Contains 54 references.) (HTH)
Descriptors: Change Strategies, Compensation (Remuneration), Early Childhood Education, Educational Finance, Educational Improvement, Educational Needs, Educational Policy, Educational Quality, Financial Support, Full Day Half Day Schedules, Kindergarten, Preschool Children, State Aid, State Standards, Teacher Characteristics, Teacher Qualifications
American Federation of Teachers, Order Department, 555 New Jersey Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20001 ($3; single copy, pre-paid). Tel: 202-393-5684; Fax: 202-393-6371; Web site: http://www.aft.org. For full text: http://www.aft.org/edissues/downloads/EarlyChildhoodreport.pdf.
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: American Federation of Teachers, Washington, DC.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A